Routine. Order. Safety. Boredom. Shadow experienced the repetitiveness of everyday life. At first, he was glad to get into this scheduled lifestyle, but before long, it became a drag. Shadow felt tied down by it. It was hard to go from fighting for one's life and the uncertainty of tomorrow, to the certainty of mundane routine. He wouldn't complain, however. Rouge had worked so hard to help him get this life, that Shadow knew he couldn't possibly throw it all away.
Work began at 6am. So Shadow had to be up at 5. He was out on the job 8pm on some nights. This left Shadow with no free time. Was this really what he wanted? It was certainly better than being hunted by a demi-god but… just how much better? This was the life Shadow had fought for. The timeline he'd struggled so hard to get back to. Sometimes he asked himself what the point was. Really, what was the point in fighting so hard for a life that was so… lifeless.
Shadow clocked in at 6:04am. A few minutes late. That was the hedgehog's helping of edge for the day. Pushing it further and further to see how late he could turn up before the Commander told him off. Shadow's record was 15 minutes. But he wouldn't turn up that late everyday. No. There was an art to this. The hedgehog couldn't believe, however, that this is what his life had come to. Toying with his arrival times. It wasn't as if it would come to much anyway.
"You're late."
Shadow was wrong. This was a surprise. Finally, some tension. He'd been hoping someone would bring him up on his negligence. The hedgehog looked up to see who had spoken to him. He didn't recognise the voice. This man was in a uniform, different from the many soldiers at GUN. This man was in a place of power.
"I'm going to dock this from your pay," the man said. "Along with all of the other times you were late. You'll be lucky to have any wages left."
Shadow's eyes widened. He wasn't expecting this. A little telling off. Maybe even threats of losing his job. But… losing his pay, yet continuing to work there? No way.
"B-but…"
"It's only fair. You should only be paid for the hours you work," the man said ominously, while looking down upon the hedgehog as if he was dirt. Shadow grit his teeth, annoyed at the man. This human certainly was irritating.
"Whatever," Shadow said, attempting to walk around the man and head off down the corridor.
"Excuse me?" the man stepped to the side, blocking Shadow's way again.
"Oh, I see what this is," Shadow said, not sounding too bothered about it. "Things are changing around here. I need to change my ways. Show some discipline. Got it." He attempted to walk.
"No," the man said. "Well, yes. But it's not as simple as that, Shadow." The hedgehog tensed up when his name was mentioned. The way it was said, with that hint of malice, but also… arrogance. That sly, smooth tone. It made Shadow's spine shiver. The hedgehog looked up at the human, wary and curious of him. "Allow me to introduce myself." The man sounded a tad bit excited. "I am the General. I was recently promoted, which means I am above that Commander, the one that looks out for you so much. Oh, Shadow. This is going to be so much fun."
Shadow tensed up. There was no way of deny it now; there was something about this man. Shadow felt his tail go between his legs when he noticed the shaded smirk on the human's face. It was awfully unsettling. The way it curled up at the edges, and spanned across the jaw of this man. It was like his mouth had a mind of it's own. Surely someone of this profession wouldn't let out such emotion so willingly. Shadow jaw dropped as he took in the unsettling look on the man's face. The expression matched well with this man's cold grey irises and pale, lifeless skin.
Shadow looked down and closed his eyes, clenching his fists.
"Stop playing with me," Shadow said firmly. "I didn't sign up here to be toyed with."
"That's not up to you… hedgehog," he said darkly. Shadow looked back up at him again, feeling his mind go through a nauseating loop. His conscious mind was pulled back through a tunnel, world spinning as it focused on specific memories.
"Are you begging, hedgehog?"
"You can run all you like, hedgehog."
"I'm not done with you yet, hedgehog."
Shadow's breath got caught in his throat as the voices echoed through his head. Those memories still haunted him, day and night. The suffering. The anguish. The fear, paranoia. The pain and agony. That despicable creature that dealt it all. Long gone, but his handiwork remained. Scars, forever etched into Shadow's mind. Shadow was sure that it would never happen again. The terror was over, and the horrible monster erased from time. Definately, absolutely certainly, he could never return. Shadow was safe. He knew it. He felt it. But this man… and those words. Shadow was not so sure anymore.
The black hedgehog walked around the man, down the corridor silently. All Shadow could hear was ringing in his ears, and the thumping in his chest. He felt cold to his core; goosebumps hardened on his skin, making his hair stand on edge. The footsteps he made echoed in his mind, becoming louder and louder, each sound like an explosion in his brain. His vision gained a filter of static as he turned the corner.
"Hedgehog~" the man sing songed from back behind the corner. "Shadow~"
Shadow leaned against the wall, feeling his knees go weak at the sound of his own name. There was no mistaking it.
"You insulted a god, Shadow," the human whispered harshly, voice ominously close. "And you will pay the price."
Shadow felt his throat close up and his head spin. He swung around to see that the man was standing right behind him. The hedgehog felt his heart skip a beat as the human's grey irises flashed the sickening reptilian green.
"I… give up," Shadow said, letting out a sigh of defeat. His eyes rolled to the back of his head as he dropped to the floor with a thud.
"Not, yet, hedgehog," the man said. "I give your orders from now on. And I order you to go about your day as if nothing happened here. If a hint of this gets out… then the people you love so dearly will die."
This is a sequel to 'Never Coming Back', which I wrote roughly 2 years ago.